PORTLAND, Maine — The realm of wearable technology is perpetually evolving, with a host of new devices emerging and existing ones becoming increasingly sophisticated. But what innovations are currently available?

Furthermore, are these gadgets genuinely practical or enjoyable for the average user?

Tech expert Rich Brooks from Flyte New Media offers insights into the matter.

When contemplating wearables, most people conjure images of smartwatches and fitness trackers. Is there an expanded landscape available?

While smartwatches and fitness trackers dominate sales, a variety of other wearables are gaining traction. Innovations such as smart rings, smart glasses, and even sensor-embedded smart clothing are now visible in the market.

Let us delve into smart rings. What functionalities do these devices offer?

Smart rings possess the capability to monitor heart rate, blood oxygen saturation, sleep quality, and even stress levels. A prominent example, the Oura Ring, provides comprehensive sleep analysis and can even predict potential illnesses based on variations in body temperature.

Some advantages of smart rings include minimal screen reliance, seamless integration into daily activities, and an impressive battery life that often spans 5-7 days.

You’ve mentioned smart glasses. Recalling the failed Google Glass, how do newer models fare?

Smart glasses are finally beginning to gain traction, overcoming years of stagnation. Brands such as Meta, with their Ray-Ban collaboration, and Snap’s Spectacles, are prioritizing lightweight designs that closely resemble conventional eyewear. These advanced smart glasses can overlay digital data onto reality—offering navigation assistance, notifications, and even real-time translations of text in sight.

If only these devices could incorporate facial recognition software to help with name recall upon sighting someone, I would be an enthusiastic adopter. However, this raises significant privacy considerations.

What is the current state of smart clothing?

Smart clothing is indeed on the rise, albeit in its nascent stages. You may find garments capable of tracking heart rate and respiration, all the way to socks designed to analyze running mechanics. Innovative brands are embedding pliable sensors within the fabric, thus delivering health insights without the burden of extra devices.

The principal challenge lies in enhancing durability and ensuring the ability to withstand washing. Athletes are already leveraging smart compression items that gauge muscle fatigue to optimize training regimes. For the general populace, the journey will likely commence with basic fitness apparel before advancing to more sophisticated applications.

How precise are the health-monitoring features of these devices?

Accuracy has markedly improved. The Apple Watch boasts FDA clearance for its electrocardiography feature, while numerous fitness trackers now utilize medical-grade heart rate sensors.

However, it is crucial to note that these gadgets are wellness-oriented, rather than medical instruments—excellent for monitoring trends and providing early alerts, yet individuals should consult healthcare professionals for substantive health concerns.

For newcomers to wearables, how should one approach purchasing decisions?

Consider your primary tracking intentions. If the goal is basic fitness metrics, an entry-level fitness tracker will run you between $50 and $150. For a comprehensive smartwatch experience—including applications and messaging capabilities—be prepared to invest between $200 and $500. Smart rings begin around $300, while decent smart glasses start at $200.

It’s advisable to begin on a modest scale. A considerable number of consumers invest in feature-laden smartwatches, only to utilize them predominantly for step counting. Upgrading can always be an option down the road.

What potential pitfalls should prospective users consider prior to embracing wearables?

Key considerations encompass battery longevity, data privacy, and financial implications. Battery life varies widely across categories and devices. It is also imperative to comprehend what data is being collected and shared regarding your privacy.

Moreover, remain cognizant that some gadgets entail monthly subscription fees for premium functionalities—an essential factor to contemplate in your purchasing deliberations.

What future advancements in the wearable domain do you anticipate?

In my explorations, I unearthed the Hypershell X, marketed as the inaugural outdoor exoskeleton. While it falls short of resembling something from a sci-fi blockbuster, it does present an intriguing take on wearables. Not certain how it would fare through TSA, and I do harbor concerns that overreliance on this type of technology could lead to a sedentary lifestyle akin to the beings of the film Wall-E. Personally, I prefer to embark on hikes with the natural capabilities my body provides.

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Robinhood Derivatives LLC sued two states’ gaming officials for allegedly trying to prevent it from offering sports-related event contracts in Nevada and New Jersey.

The complaints, filed Tuesday in the US district courts for the districts of Nevada and New Jersey, seek to enjoin the state officials from enforcing state gaming or gambling laws against Robinhood for its facilitation of transactions involving sport-related event contracts.

An event contract lets customers trade on potential outcomes of future events, like who might win an election or football game. Robinhood’s contracts trade on derivatives trading platform KalshiEx LLC, which the Commodity Futures Trading Commission named a designated contract market almost five years ago.

Robinhood’s complaints pointed to other federal court orders offering Kalshi preliminary relief. The districts of Nevada and New Jersey held earlier this year that Kalshi showed a likelihood of success on the merits of its argument that state law on sports wagers is preempted by a federal act regulating commodity futures and swaps trading and that it would suffer irreparable harm without relief. A federal judge in Maryland recently denied Kalshi’s similar request, splitting with these states.

Robinhood’s legal pursuits come as a result of it activating customers’ access to sports-related trading in both states after not reaching an agreement with the Nevada Gaming Control Board and New Jersey Division of Gaming Enforcement. The company says that it faces an “immediate threat of civil penalties and criminal prosecution” from state officials and was left with no other choice but to sue in federal courts.

“If states could regulate some but not all entities relevant to these transactions, such regulation would infringe on the CFTC’s exclusive jurisdiction and fracture what Congress intended to be a uniform set of regulations for commodity futures and swaps trading,” Robinhood’s complaints said.

Robinhood launched its prediction markets hub earlier this year and intermediates customers’ trades on Kalshi’s exchange. The company filed these suits the day it launched its pro and college football prediction markets.

“Our event contracts, including those for pro and college football, are offered in a compliant, federally regulated way through our CFTC registered Futures Commission Merchant, Robinhood Derivatives,” a Robinhood spokesperson said of the legal action in an email. “This is a decisive step forward in our mission to democratize finance for all and unlock even more innovative market opportunities for investors.”

Nevada and New Jersey’s attorneys general offices declined to comment.

Cravath, Swaine & Moore LLP represents Robinhood in both suits. Pisanelli Bice PLLC is local counsel in Nevada and Chiesa Shahinian & Giantomasi PC is in New Jersey.

The cases are Robinhood Derivatives, LLC v. Dreitzer, D. Nev., No. 2:25-cv-01541, complaint filed 8/19/25 and Robinhood Derivatives, LLC v. Flaherty, D.N.J., No. 1:25-cv-14723, complaint filed 8/19/25.

Cisco Systems and Oracle America have decided to embark on fresh rounds of layoffs that will eliminate a combined 300-plus jobs in the Bay Area, the tech titans disclosed in WARN notices they sent to the state’s labor agency.

Here are the details of the staffing reductions reported to the state Employment Development Department by Cisco and Oracle:

— Cisco Systems is cutting 221 jobs, which consist of 157 layoffs in Milpitas and another 64 in San Francisco, according to the WARN notices.

— Oracle America is cutting 101 positions in Santa Clara, the company revealed in a WARN notice filed with the EDD on Aug. 14. These staffing reductions come on the heels of a disclosure by Oracle on Aug. 13 that it had decided to cut 188 jobs, consisting of a loss of 143 positions in Redwood City and 45 in Pleasanton.

San Jose-based Cisco stated its latest layoffs were scheduled to take effect on Oct. 13, according to the WARN letters. They were all described as permanent.

“None of the affected employees are represented by a union, nor do any have bumping rights applicable to the positions in question,” a Cisco executive stated in the WARN letter.

Cisco previously had layoffs in November 2024.

With the latest round of cuts, Cisco has disclosed plans to eliminate about 2,870 jobs in the Bay Area over a period that covers 2022 through August, according to this news organization’s compilation of numerous WARN letters the company sent to the EDD.

Oracle stated that its most recent layoffs at the three Bay Area locations would take effect on Oct. 13. Including job cuts that Oracle disclosed in 2022, the cloud services giant has disclosed staffing reductions that affected 490 positions.

Originally Published: August 19, 2025 at 4:20 PM PDT

Traders Drew Cohen, left, and Ryan Falvey work on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange, Monday, Aug. 18, 2025. (AP Photo/Richard Drew)

NEW YORK (AP) — Wall Street held near its record heights on Monday, ahead of a week likely to be dominated by updates from the head of the Federal Reserve and from some of the biggest U.S. retailers.

The S&P 500 barely budged and fell by less than 0.1%, coming off its first loss after setting an all-time high in three consecutive days. The Dow Jones Industrial Average slipped 33 points, or 0.1%, and the Nasdaq composite edged up by less than 0.1%.

Novo Nordisk’s stock that trades in the United States rose 3.7% after the Danish company said U.S. regulators approved its Wegovy drug as part of a treatment for a liver disease found in many overweight and obese people.

Soho House, a membership club with locations around the world, jumped 14.9% after announcing a deal where an investor group led by hotel-operator MCR would pay $9 in cash for its shares.

Several of the country’s largest retailers, meanwhile, were mixed ahead of their profit reports that are scheduled for later in the week. Home Depot, which will report on Tuesday, slipped 1.2%.

Target rose 1.9% ahead of its report on Wednesday, and Walmart added 0.7% before its report on Thursday.

They, along with companies like Estee Lauder and Ross Stores, could offer a look at how different types of U.S. households are holding up when the job market seems to have morphed into one where relatively few workers are getting fired but also hired.

Just like a small group of wealthy households are separating from the rest of the country, a handful of Big Tech companies are dominating the U.S. stock market, in part because of a boom in spending around artificial-intelligence technology.

This separation of “haves” and “have nots” in the stock market could be increasing the risk, with many companies potentially facing trouble if the economy stagnates and inflation is high, according to Lisa Shalett, chief investment officer at Morgan Stanley Wealth Management. The danger is that investors could look at how much the broad S&P 500 index has surged since its low point in April and “extrapolate the success of the few to the gains of the many.”

On Friday, the focus will swing to Jackson Hole, Wyoming, which has been the home in past years of many big policy announcements from the Federal Reserve. There, Fed Chair Jerome Powell will give a speech, and investors are hoping to hear how his mind has changed about interest rates since he said last month that he wanted to wait longer before cutting interest rates.

The fear at that time was that President Donald Trump’s tariffs could push inflation higher. Now, though, the bigger fear could be the slowing U.S. job market following a disappointingly weak report on employment that arrived just after the Fed’s last meeting.

The Fed’s twin jobs are to keep the job market healthy while also maintaining a lid on inflation, and helping one can often hurt the other in the short term.

Lower rates can boost the economy by making it cheaper for U.S. households and businesses to borrow to buy houses, cars or equipment, for example, but they also risk worsening inflation.

Inflation updates since the Fed’s last meeting have come in mixed, further muddying the picture, but traders are nevertheless strongly expecting the Fed to cut its main interest rate for the first time this year at its next meeting in September. The hope is that Powell could give a nod to that.

Expectations for cuts to interest rates have pulled Treasury yields lower lately, and they largely remained there on Monday.

The yield on the 10-year Treasury held at 4.33%, where it was late Friday.

On Wall Street, the S&P 500 edged down 0.65 to 6,449.15. The Dow Jones Industrial Average slipped 34.30 to 44,911.82, and the Nasdaq composite added 6.80 to 21,629.77.

In stock markets abroad, indexes mostly fell in Europe in their first trading after Trump’s inconclusive summit meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Friday about the war in Ukraine. Trump met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Monday.

In Asia, indexes were mixed, with Japan’s Nikkei 225 rising 0.8% and South Korea’s Kospi falling 1.5%.

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